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Greetings from Barcelona☀️ where it’s been great to have some family travel time and an opportunity to take a much-needed 30K ft view of life. More on that below👇
🙌Many thanks for reading The Quest. I’m dedicating this edition to my dear father-in-law Ricardo Dussan who passed away peacefully on April 13 in Bogota, Colombia.
If you are joining for the first time, welcome to our deep dive into facilitation, learning, and how to live a creative life.
Let’s jump right in!
🔑Have you ever met someone who has cracked the code on living a productive and meaningful life?
I have. His name was Ricardo Dussan. He was my father-in-law.
Without a doubt, he was the most productive person I have ever met.
He didn’t read a single book on productivity. He didn’t make any elaborate to-do lists. He didn’t overthink things. He lived by the mantra, “don’t put off until tomorrow what you can do today.”
He was also happy and fulfilled.
He always had time for his family. He was generous with his advice. He knew how to enjoy life. And a good gin & tonic.
He knew more Colombian proverbs than anyone I knew.
He had an endless bank of wise sayings that he could recite from memory at exactly the right moment.
Like this one when I was telling him one day about a challenge I was facing:
“Pan duro, diente agudo.”
My very rough translation –> “Stale bread, sharp teeth.” (It sounds better in Spanish 😅)
His secret?
Keep it simple and keep your priorities clear. He never actually said that. Instead, he showed us by living it every day.
🤔How do you live a productive and fulfilled life?
That’s our Quest for this week🔎
👉 Don’t Try to be Happy – Focus on These 5 Things Instead
👉Julia Saxena’s How to do a Weekly Review
Plus
👉You’re invited! Join me and superstar facilitator Jenny Sauer-Klien for an interactive online session on building trust on June 15 (free for Quest readers – details below) 👇
💡Don’t Try to Be Happy – Focus on These 5 Things Instead
A Fast Company article that shares 5 insights from psychology professor Paul Bloom’s new book, The Sweet Spot: The Pleasures of Suffering and the Search for Meaning.
I have become skeptical of “happiness” advice. I get a lot of it delivered to my inbox. That’s why I was glad to come across Bloom’s insights. He shifts the focus from searching for happiness to meaning.
Here’s what he writes:
1/ “He who has a why to live can bear almost any how.” (Nietzsche quoted by Victor Frankl)
Our drive for meaning is every bit as important as the drive to have a good time.
2/ Suffering can enhance pleasure.
Pain and pleasure are intertwined and the contrast between the two makes us appreciate positive experiences.
3/ Suffering can give us meaning.
Projects that are most central to our lives involve suffering and sacrifice.
4/ Effort sweetens life.
The more effort you put into something, the more you value it.
5/ Don’t try to be happy.
Studies show that people who pursue happiness are the least happy. And to top it off, we are usually wrong anyway about what we think makes us happy.
Bottom line 👉 If you want to experience pleasure and joy and meaning, you may need to try less hard at attaining these things.
Read the full article 👉here.
✍️The Weekly Review: In 5 Steps to More Clarity & Focus
I am pretty good at seeing the very big picture (30,000 ft) or the very minute detail of what needs to be done (the weeds). I find it much more difficult to focus on what is in between.
Then I came across Julia Saxena’ssteps for doing a weekly review. She reveals her system for tracking weekly progress.
Julia is a copywriter and online course specialist. She is also the marketing manager for Tiago Forte’s legendary cohort-based course Building a Second Brain. Her advice is golden.
Check out the full article 👉 here.
And sign up for her free weekly newsletter for more insights on copywriting online courses, and productivity 👉 here.
🎟️ You’ve Invited: Free Live Facilitation Session on Trust – June 15
Join me and Play On Purpose and Scaling Intimacy founder Jenny Sauer-Klien for an action-packed Virtual Connection Lab live online session on Trust.
3 reasons not to miss this session:
👉Jenny is one of the most exceptional facilitators I know
👉You’ll meet an inspiring community of facilitators, coaches, consultants, and organizational leaders
👉You’ll learn 2 new exercises you can use immediately with your groups and teams
Jenny has very generously offered free access to Quest members. You can register with the code: GWYNFREE2022.
📸Photo of the Week
Somewhere 30,000 feet over Paris…
💌Thanks for reading The Quest
I always love hearing your feedback and suggestions. Just hit reply to share your thoughts and ideas.
🙌Special shout out to Breakthrough Facilitation Cohort 2 graduates 🎉, Mathilde and the Circle Show & Tell participants, and Quest readers Romi, Barry, Michaele, Joan, and Ravi.
Visit my website for ways we can work together 👉 here.
If you were forwarded this email, you can subscribe to The Quest 👉here.
If you are enjoying The Quest, I’d appreciate it if you shared it with anyone you think might like it.
Creatively yours,
